Minutes:
It was moved by Councillor Lamb and seconded by Councillor Sue Mullins
RESOLVED UNANIMOUSLY
That, in pursuance of Section 249 of the Local Government Act 1972, the Council do admit BRENDA ANN SMITH to be an Honorary Alderwoman and Honorary Freewoman of the Borough of Crawley, the most honourable distinctions which it is the privilege of the Council to bestow in appreciation and acknowledgement of the eminent services rendered by her to the Borough Council as a Councillor from 1978 to 1984, 1988 to 1992 & 1996 to 2022 and as Mayor of the Borough in 1990/91 and 2014/15, as a West Sussex County Councillor from 2009 to 2021. Member for many years of Crawley & Dorsten Town Twinning Association and Chairman from 2017-2018, Crawley Dementia Ambassador, Founder of the Langley Green Forum, Campaigner for the building of the Mother and Baby Room situated on The Boulevard, Crawley, School Governor at Langley Green Infants & Junior School and Holy Trinity Church of England Secondary School for many years and as an expression of the high esteem in which he is held by the Mayor, the Council and the people of the Town.
As well as Councillor Lamb and Councillor Sue Mullins, Councillors Lanzer and Adeniyi also paid tribute to Brenda Smith.
With the motion having been duly carried, Brenda Smith thereupon signed the Rolls of Honorary Freewoman and Honorary Alderwoman, with her signatures being attested by the Mayor and the Chief Executive.
On behalf of the Council and the people of Crawley, the Mayor then conveyed her congratulations to Brenda Smith, and presented to her a badge and a scroll recording her admission as an Honorary Freewoman and Honorary Alderwoman.
Brenda Smith then addressed the Council and the assembled guests and expressed her thanks for being honoured in this way. A copy of her speech can be found below:
Thank you so much. I had absolutely no idea that I was going to get involved in the meeting tonight. I'm very, very honoured and I have to say and some of you will be surprised but really overwhelmed. I've been a member of the Council in Crawley for 36 years, over 39 year period, and although I've been off the Council now for about 2 years I still keep in touch with newspapers and via colleagues as to what's going on here and I believe I always will. It's been such a huge part of my life.
Of course, several of you have mentioned my late husband, Jim, who I met on the Council coming here as a single woman and Jim was on the council and we ended up getting married in committee room C, which was a bit of a novelty. The funny thing was that in committee room C, those of you who have been members over there, they have absolutely lovely polished tables and all through my wedding, all I could think about was that there was a coffee stain on the on the table and they needed to sort it out! But this building is very different, but I have to say my heart lays next door. And I should be really sad when they knock it down and it's been a big part of all of us I think, and I shall certainly miss it.
Apart from that, I don't know what to say to you but thank you for this honour, which was totally unexpected. I enjoyed watching everybody else coming up and talking sensibly, and I'm just wondering what else to say but it's been a great evening and to see so many of my colleagues - some old and new. We've got a lot of new councillors that I'm absolutely thrilled to see and several other younger councillors, and that's what we need. Plus women, of course, but we've done quite well with women again, looking through the Chamber on both sides. They need us, you know, they don't like to admit it, but they! So thank you very much and it's been a lovely evening and I've had a brilliant time. Thank you.